I don't own Prince of Tennis.
Haruma's head snapped to the side when her fist connected with his face. A throbbing, shivering kind of pain crawled all the way from her fingers to her arm the moment her knuckles met flesh and bones, sending a flash of white temporarily clouding her eyes.
For a moment time froze between them. Nobody registered what had happened; nobody reacted; nobody stepped up. They stood like forlorn statues on the green field—a match, played in a different reality altogether—when realization finally dawned upon them.
Then time rebound in break-neck speed.
He grabbed the wrist she'd struck him with and pulled her towards him, reaching out with his free hand. The punch came sudden, even though she saw his fist coming down in crisp, absurd detail. Her stomach churned in pain as it connected and she gasped at the numbing flare spreading throughout her body. For the briefest of moments their eyes caught, long enough to spot the murderous intent blazing hot inside the brown, the red—
Instinct kicked in and she stumbled out of the way, away from him, ignoring the sharp pain erupting inside her stomach with every step she took. "Stop it!" somebody yelled—it's the referee, the first-year referee is calling for help—but she didn't dare look, didn't dare avert her eyes from the danger inching closer towards her. She was in danger. In real, terrifying danger.
And there's no way out of this.
He darted forward, face expressionless but for the fire raging in his eyes and she barely managed to duck and sidestep him. If he got to her she was dead. The blood rushed deafening loud past her ears.
Something got her leg and took her feeting away. With flailing arms she slammed into the ground, rough surface chafing her skin open in another spark of pain.
They noticed now, that something was off. Worried—warning—shouts broke from all sides over their cage. The words were lost to her as she watched him clean up the small trail of blood trickling down his lips. Her work, she realized. "Why don't you just say it?" she snarled in his direction, his hand on her ankle unrelenting. "Why didn't you tell them already if you're so sure about me?" The growl that came from her throat surprised even her and she kicked and clawed at both his hand and sore face to free herself. The will of the desperate drove her because now she had nothing to lose. Nothing.
There's no way out of this.
With a particularly strong pull she was out of his grasp. It was her luck that help arrived and hands spawned across Haruma's chest, trying to hold him back but he buckled like an angry bull. "This is between us!" he hissed, pushing the person away before picking her up by her collar, back arching uncomfortably to meet him. "Directly to Yukimura. We're going—"
Yukimura. "Never." Anywhere but to Yukimura. "Nowhere with you."
Fire. There's so many angry flames now that he no longer glazed away from view. "You don't have a say in this—what the?!" He dropped her unceremonously on the floor as someone pushed him out of the way.
To her dread she recognized the familiar ink-colored mess of hair in the very instant he stepped between them. Ryo. "You're both going to get suspended if you keep this up," he said quickly, unusually collected. Shouting. More people gather. What was she going to do with all this attention centered on them? "Stop this, Haruma-kun."
The dread caught in her throat like bile when he flicked the thin boy away like paper. "You don't know a thing. Keep out—"
Minori charged him square in the gut. His fingers grasped her hair, clutching tightly, tugging at the roots. "Why do you keep on fighting so badly?!" The fire flickered, unsecure, and Minori sensed her chance in the brief moment of indecision. It's do or die.
There's no way out of this.
"No, Minori! Stop!"
Her knee went right between his legs and he doubled over. "Because it's all I can do."
The regular were in the middle of a team meeting when the commotion reached them. The quiet routine of practice was broken by a sudden swell of noises, voices doubling over themselves as the wave of news rushed over them. "Yukimura-buchou!" the first-year panted, eyes wide as the Captain regarded him with a questioning look. "Kobayashi and Hanajou—"
"No, Minori! Stop!"
Yukimura's eyes slid together dangerously. The first-year gulped. "They're fighting, sir. I don't know what happened. One minute they're playing a match, then it's—"
"Haruma, calm yourself!"
The Captain silenced him with a swipe of his arm. "Enough." Without another word he rushed along with the other students to the scene, pushing past the sea of bodies. "What is the meaning of this?" Yukimura's voice cut through the air like a blade and stilled the commotion for a brief, lingering moment.
They were just in time to hear the rattle of the fence dissipate into a quaint clir as the small body slumped to the ground, curling up in a tight ball of pain, clutching the bloody head with a barely restrained sob.
"Fuck!" Akaya exclaimed, breaking the silence first. "I knew he'd get into trouble right before the preliminaries! I knew it!" When he rushed to his classmate, Sanada's firm grip on his shoulder held him back.
"Stop it," he said with a menacing glare before brushing past him instead, Yukimura and Yanagi in tow. The second-year shut his mouth that his teeth clattered, hand clenched into a tight fist but he complied.
The tension weighed thick and heavy as a storm cloud above them when the Three Monsters stepped into the tennis court turned into a battle field. Haruma stood frozen in motion, fist still raised from the last attack. Ryo scrambled to his feet to rush to his downed friend, sporting a split lip.
Minori trembled under the effort to get up. Her arms folded in on themselves, too weak to do anything but quiver and shudder and fall. Ryo supported her, lacing one arm around her shoulder before pulling her up into a kneeling position.
Yagyuu caught onto the irrational intake of breath of his Doubles partner, turqoise eyes staring dead ahead. From the flicker of guilt ghosting across his face he instantly knew that the trickster had had his hand in this mess at least partially so. He righted the glasses on his nose, watching as the 2nd-years rose to their feet agonizingly slow.
"I asked," Yukimura started once more. "What the meaning of this is."
The gray of her eyes looked almost menacing, steel-hard and unrelenting. "Cat got your tongue, Haruma? Say it." Silence. Marui and Jackal exchanged glances. The heavy storm cloud was suddenly laced with fierce ice grappling its way into the skies. "Do you want to punch me unconscious before you do? Say it now."
"Shut up!" Haruma yelled, eyes wide. "You shameless...!"
Minori rushed a step forward, almost tripping both Ryo and herself in the process. Akaya's eyes jumped between the two and the 3rd-year. "Shameless what? Yukimura-buchou's right there." She positively snarled at him then, there's nothing to lose. Only to gain. Do or die trying. "Shameless, he says. Explain this to me and call yourself a fucking man afterward."
Her lips trembled, adrenaline draining and in exchange only introducing pain. A choked sob escaped her when she took another step forward, feeling Ryo's hand squeeze her arm tightly. "We're never going to get along, are we?" These must be the mad French genes, she thought with an irony that almost had her laughing from its ridicule. In a situation like this. What was she even doing right now? Why did it hurt inside her chest way more than outside? Why did she start to think about earlyy morning, the parrot, cockatoo and canary and the carefree demeanour they had all displayed?
Because it's all gone now. "So tell them the truth. I'm sure they'll be on your side if they heard how you beat up a—"
"Shut up!" he yelled.
And the silence that followed this time was finalizing in its effectiveness.
"I really don't wish to interrupt this lovely show, Captain, but that guy is going to bleed to death at this rate," Niou spoke up from behind the Monsters, walking into the open field with his thumb casually jerked in Minori's direction.
Yukimura eyed the trickster who had sneaked up on them briefly before crossing his arms over his chest. "I take it none of you will tell me the reasons for this disturbance?" he asked the two behind the commotion. Minori glanced at Haruma who shook his head with gritted teeth and her heart skipped a beat. She promptly followed his example. "Genichirou," he said matter-of-factly.
The vice-captain stepped up and the atmosphere shifted upon his approach. Minori gulped. Something was about to happen and she wasn't certain whether she was going to like it or not. Haruma's face was unreadable, a blank slate unwilling to show what was behind those fuming eyes. And then things happened very fast.
Slap!
His head snapped to the side violently under Sanada's unforgiving hand. Auburn strands flicked to the side and caught onto the thin line of lips. The meeting of flesh on flesh still rung in her ears as she finally understood what was in store for her. Her mind reeled back, body bruised and pained enough already, but she stood her ground, shifting only slightly away from Ryo to meet Sanada's gaze head-on.
Slap!
She stumbled into her friend. Her cheek flared in pain, white stars dancing before her vision but she'd pressed her lips together as tightly as Haruma had, not even a whimper escaping her throat. His eyes drilled into her as she straightened her back and squared her shoulders but she only threw him back a rebellious look.
She acted like a man. She had to take it like a man.
The Captain sighed but his face was no less stern as he addressed the remaining club members. "Someone take Haruma-kun and Ryo-kun to the changing rooms and treat them an icebag and plasters from the first-aid box there," Yukimura ordered through slanted eyes. Some of the 3rd- and 2nd-years rushed inside to follow.
Ryo hesitated. Minori was practically boneless in his grip. "What about...?"
Yukimura nodded in Niou's direction. "Bring him to the infirmary. The nurse should still be in." The silver-head nodded, trading places with the worried 2nd-year. But the soft-spoken Captain would not be Captain of the victorious tennis club if he let it slide at that. There was an obvious animosity between the two that just couldn't be neither healed nor knit together.
"Cause another commotion—any sort of commotion—and you're both off the team. Have I made myself clear?" They nodded in unison.
Little did they all know his words would turn true one day.
Minori bit down on her lower lip. Pain.
Her whole being was composed of it.
Each step had her toppling, every attempt to look up close to vomiting. If it weren't for Niou's firm hold on her arms as they ascended every new, never-ending flight of stairs, she'd have given up long ago, curled up and hiding in a corner until the pain went away. Adrenaline had long since left her bloodstream and the aftereffects were far worse than she could've ever anticipated.
The panicked voice screaming and banging at the skull from inside her head didn't help the situation at all. Why had she punched him? A guy easily taller, stronger than her; one eager to crush his enemies not just inside the court but outside as well.
Madness. Desperation. Off-the-charts sense of pride. You name it.
She didn't think it through.
Just thinking of the consequences of her actions had bile rising from the back of her throat. It's over. Her heart constricted painfully hard at the mere thought that things would be over just like this; snap-of-her-fingers—gone. Haruma wouldn't keep his mouth shut for too long, not even his pride was large enough to keep quiet about it. His telling would overshadow the fact that he brawled with the lesser gender, messed her up so badly. She was living on borrowed time—he could already be telling Yukimura—
"Why?" she managed to get out as they entered the infirmary. Niou's turquoise eyes reminded her of an ocean then, his gaze, when it lingered on her face, as distant as the bottom of the sea. "Why did you tell him?"
The nurse jumped to her feet, throwing her handbag back into the chair. "I was just about to leave! What happened?" Gentle fingers brush her skin, her arms and even through the clothes it sent goosebumps racing up and down her back. It hurt so much.
Akaya would never throw pencils again. Ryo would not jump on her back with every greeting. Marui wouldn't zoom in on her bad habits like a mother hen. Yukimura wouldn't smile his secret devil smile. Sanada wouldn't give her reprimanding looks any longer. Yanagi wouldn't push a new diet plan into her fingers. Jackal would no longer try to stop her from fighting with others. Not even Yagyuu would throw her one of his mysterious glinting-glasses looks.
They wouldn't be messing around during classes, during break, during training. There's no one mussing up her hair. No extra rounds to run.
And she'd even drag Toshio down with her.
She hadn't even noticed when they sat her down on the bed. Her body slumped instantly, boneless and weak. Why did she have to punch him out of all the things? Her head was on fire, her knuckles throbbed, stomach churned. Why did she have to kick him in the balls?
And just then—without a warning—she laughed. She seized up in laughter, doubling over from both pain and the sudden release of stress.
Even to her ears it sounded hysterical.
"Thank you for bringing him over but I have to ask you to leave now," the nurse started, glancing in her direction. "If you don't mind, can you please contact his—"
"He stays," Minori interrupted firmly, laughter dying out instantly. The silence following was even more eery than before. "He knows," she mumbled towards the woman, then raised her gaze up to meet Niou's unreadable one. Ocean. "He knows," she repeated, sharp edge to her words. Just as sudden as the laughter had come, anger, disappointment, sadness entered the field. A whirlwind of feelings—and another wave of pain. Goddamn, it hurt so, so much.
Exchanging a glance with the nurse, Niou dropped on the bed opposite hers, stretching his long legs out until they almost touched her dangling feet. Leaning back on the palms of his hands, he chose to watch and stare. The nurse threw her hands up in defeat and turned to gather her instruments.
The minutes passed without a word. Much like he did, she stared, searching his eyes, meeting his gaze head-on. It was only when the nurse started dabbing soft cotton balls on her open wound that Minori hissed and briefly broke eye contact. The disinfection liquid stung like a bee's hive ravaging her face.
"I didn't tell him," Niou said.
Opening her eyes, she glared at him. "Do you really think I'm that stupid?"
"Depends on the situation," he retorted. "Currently I believe you're way below even Bakaya's level of stupidity. I bet you didn't think at all when you started a fight with that guy. You're too eager to jump at a challenge; so easy to provoke—"
With a yell her hand was around his collar and they both tumbled into the bed behind. She half stood, half knelt on the clean sheets above him, heaving in sync to the heavy pounding of her heart. A heavy wave of nausea hit her but she swallowed it down to the best of her ability.
Niou stared back unaffected. "And you just love to prove the points."
"Even if you are officially a boy doesn't mean I'll let you act like one," the nurse chipped in angrily and grabbed her by the shoulder, pulling her back where she had been. "Especially not in my infirmary. Are we clear?" A robotic nod was all she received; Minori's eyes never strayed from the trickster's.
He picked himself back up into a sitting position. "I thought you wanted to find out about my reason first before telling anyone."
He rose a brow. "We've never been on the same side. Someone in your position shouldn't hope in peoples' generosity."
The nerve of that guy...! "I don't expect generosity. I simply thought you'd keep to your word in some resemblance of pride," she scoffed.
"Apparently you're not just stupid but also deaf," he shot back, ocean in his eyes spinning with the barest hint of anger. "I quote myself: I didn't tell him. Why would I?" Niou leaned forwards, tips of his silver hair framing his eyes in a dangerous manner. "I will be the one to find out and reveal your secret. Nobody else. We made a bet."
That they did. Minori gulped, turning her head slightly to the side when the nurse beckoned. The cotton started to pile up on her tray, speckles of red over white fluff. "So you're saying you had nothing to do with this? At all?" She sighed, closing her eyes. It was easy to trust him, somehow. She didn't know why. "Then how did he find out?"
Niou fell back, shoulders meeting the cool surface of sheets and stared at the ceiling. He clicked his tongue in thought. "Beats me. What'd he say?"
"They don't want you here because of your skills," he said, lowering his head so that the referee would not hear his next words. "They want you here because you're a girl."
"I think—" Wait a second. "I think he believes that you guys know about it."
"He's not entirely wrong, puri," Niou hummed, pointing at himself.
Minori shook her head and it earned her a smack to the shoulder. Ouch. "No, I mean, he explicitly mentioned your name for whatever reason. But it sounds like he thinks Yukimura knows about it, too..." her voice trailed off. "But at the same time he wanted to tell the Captain about it..."
Even from the awkward angle Minori could see the grin on Niou's lips widen. "Well, sounds like he isn't sure himself. If the Captain knows about you—he must have a good reason, right?" Niou swung his body up, eyes alight with mischief. "And if he doesn't, Haruma's doing him a favor. It's fifty-fifty."
Minori blinked. "Are you telling me that he winged it?"
"Sort of." She cursed. Another smack. The nurse raised a reprimanding finger. "But it doesn't change the fact that he still found out somehow. He had a hunch and went with it. Good thing you managed to talk him down. Spectacular thing, that."
She sent him a deadpan look. Gee, thanks. "I told you you're too touchy-feely with me."
Niou smirked, black mole rising with the action. "But it's so fun~"
"You suck as a trickster," she added flatly. While he caught her off-guard most of the times, his relentless poking and provoking, the pressure he exerted—it had been his own boldness that had sent his plan spiraling out of control. Add her defiant attitude that wouldn't bend but stand rigid before everything he threw at her and they had a receipt for disaster.
And Haruma's sister was the cherry atop the cake that sent the tower of cards crashing into the ground.
"I don't know what you're talking about." He propped his head on his palm, grinning smugly. "This is still my game. I decide when it's over."
It was only a matter of time until Haruma gathered up the shards of his shattered pride and slipped the secret. Why did she feel so light-hearted and warm about it then? Just looking at Niou's face made her smile when minutes ago, she had like to do nothing less than rip every strand of his hair out. "You can't tape his mouth shut." It was almost like she wanted him to say something in response, to bury her every doubt and rekindle a hope that shouldn't be allowed.
She wasn't sure whether he knew all that; what she needed right now. "I can always staple it." He sure did not drop the smug expression.
Minori blinked baffled, imagery going bonkers, before laughter bubbled up so suddenly she couldn't contain it. Even as her face burned up in pain again she didn't stop, clutching her stomach tightly.
This time it sounded healthy and carefree.
Despite all the struggles, she'd come to love this screwed-up situation of hers. She didn't want it to end yet.
Therefore she had to make sure it wouldn't.
Who was surprised to see this in their alerts? Teehee. Hee. He. Hah. Uhh. We shall continue as if nothing ever happened and consider this part of the updating routine as of now. It was supposed to be another big monster of a chapter but it felt more fitting to end here. Also this means the 15th is well on its way! Yay for that.
EDIT (02/04/15): It only took, what, more than a year? for the 15th chapter to come out. OTL. IMMA GONNA BE A BETTER PERSON FROM NOW ON!